How Do You Wear an Ascot or Cravat?

When is it appropriate to wear old-fashioned or non-typical neckwear like an ascot or a cravat? How do you tie them?

Community Answers

282

3-29-12

Geoffrey says:

There are two answers to this question.

The first answer is that you don’t wear a traditional ascot or cravat in the style of the late 19th and early 20th centuries unless you’re dressed up in historical costume. The stiff, starched-linen cravat is entirely obsolete, and the gray silk ascot only appears in the rarely-used daytime formal wear known as “morning dress.”

The second answer is that some men are currently wearing modernized ascots as casual neckwear. These are tied with a simple knot and then tucked under the shirtfront, with the collar left unbuttoned, and are typically brightly-colored and elaborately-patterned. They’re not business attire, but they do have their place in contemporary casual fashion.